A Tribute to SSJason19

I’ve watched more Yugitubing than home movies, local news, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine combined. 

Perhaps that’s not saying much.  Nevertheless, I have consumed a large amount of Yugioh content in 10 to 15 minute video bites.  The most recent binge came with a contest sponsored by Underworld6667 who brought 32 aspiring videographers together to vie for the title of the Next Great Yugituber.   While the contest had the alacrity of a US Presidential election, it did reveal three promising Yugitubers.  However, none of them rose to the level of my favorite, SSJason19. 

At his best, Jason does what few Yugitubers can, namely explain the game of Yugioh.  YouTube is rife with self-appointed experts offering such cutting commentary as “This card is broken” of “That deck sucks”.  However, few can give cogent reasons for their passionate statements.  Even fewer offer principles that can be applied to the game in general.

For those of you who have yet to click on the link to his channel, here is a small sample:

• The neg 1 exceed: Playing two cards from your hand to make one XYZ monster is a Neg 1 Exceed.   This simple rule explains why 80% of the archetypes in Yugioh are bad. It also explains the potential perils of cards like Satellarknight Vega and Tin Goldfish.  Vega works well with Deneb as does Goldfish with Gadgets.  However, most of the time you are giving up card advantage and making yourself vulnerable to one-for-one removal.  

•  MST is bad: Jason created more than a little stir by suggesting MST be taken out of the main deck.  Nevertheless, his point was quite valid.  Drawing into an MST can be a problem in the latter portion of the duel.  With the exception of Qlipharts, you generally need to deal with monsters and not spells and traps.

• Cake and Crap: A couple of months ago I wrote a post about combining different engines.  While this method can create some interesting decks, the usual outcome is a deck that underperforms.  The reason is that most hybrids use an excellent engine (i.e. the cake) and combine it with a deck that needs help (i.e. the crap).  As SSJason colorfully points out nobody wants to eat cake with crap in it. 

The Yugitube world seems to be divided into analysts and entertainers.  The division is somewhat arbitrary since many analysts entertain and vice-versa.  I make distinction based on my motivation for clicking on a video.  Do I want to be amused or do I want to learn something? I learn from analysts. 

Unfortunately, the careers of analysts are often much shorter than the careers of entertainers.  Perhaps their understanding makes them more aware of the game’s problems.  I suspect this is the case for Jason.  His prodigious video output has taken a significant drop in the past several months as the game has introduced archetypes and mechanics that make concepts like “card advantage” irrelevant.

I hope Jason continues to make videos.  His slightly subversive style combined with an endearing Scottish brogue will always be welcome.  

My YouTube Recommendations:

Analysts

• MegaCapitalG: Cap may be one of the best analysts in the game today.  His duel commentaries are far better than those used by Konami or ARG.  My only criticism is his penchant to butcher the pronunciation of card names; but as a hometown guy, I’ll cut him some slack.
• Lithium2300: While I may be drawn in by the gravitas of his Belgium accent, I still believe Lithium offers outstanding analysis of up and coming archetypes.  He does have a penchant for Monarchs, but this may be the best rogue strategy in the game today. 
• Cimoooooo: If you like Yugi-enthusiasm, you will love this channel.  Cimoooooo provides some of the best tech analysis in the game. 

Entertainers

• GalacticGod: As the veritable grandfather of the Yugitube world, GalacticGod reminds us what is fun about this game.  
• YourYugiohChannel: High quality, well edited videos + a likable host = a very successful Yugitube channel.
• TheRJB0: Robert is one of the few Yugitubers that defies my classification.  He does entertaining analysis or analytical entertainment. 
• Duelrock88: Along with RJB0 and Cimoooooo, Duelrock made the hours of Underworlds contest worthwhile.  As a host, he is quite likeable and he benefits from his association with team UNITED GOSUS.
• dpYGO: Those of you with delicate sensibilities would be advised to avoid this channel.  Everyone else should click on an ad so that he can pay the rent.